At the age of 5 years, Ryan Smith made the choice to do the right thing and not be a follower. As a kindergartner, Ryan recognized the pain his classmates caused another child who had a disability. At that moment, Ryan decided to help his peer, rather than cause additional hurt. That single moment has guided Ryan in making decisions professionally, most notably, leaving a company that no longer aligned to his values and beliefs. We talk about a variety of topics this episode: keys to raising a child, the life decision that Ryan made which changed his life, using your courage, finding your purpose, taking steps back to move forward, and, what we are grateful for during this COVID Thanksgiving. Overall, Ryan reminds us all to listen to our gut instinct and strive to always do the right thing. Born and raised in Detroit, MI, Ryan Smith received his Bachelor’s in Business Administration (Human Resource Management) with concentrations in Political Science and Economics from Western Michigan University. He then began his professional career with Macy’s Inc. as a Sales Manager where he managed over 200 associates and an annual sales volume of $20 million. Ryan was then promoted into the Human Resources field and shifted his HR skills from retail to a more people focused organization, ManpowerGroup. After several years consulting with clients across the U.S., he relocated to Oakland, CA. In 2018, Ryan accepted the role of Manager, Human Resources Business Partner for Industrial Light & Magic in San Francisco and Skywalker Sound in Marin County, CA, both Disney companies under Lucasfilm, (his dream job!) Ryan has been a guest speaker discussing topics around diversity and inclusion, career advancement, generational differences, employment law and performance management. He enjoys giving back to his community by volunteering for events such as Go Red for Women and Reading is Fundamental. Ryan resides in Northern CA.Connect with Ryan at https://www.linkedin.com/in/smithryans/ to learn more about him and his background.Sign up for our newsletter at https://abbraccigroup.com/. Please subscribe, leave a review and tell your friends about our podcast. Learn more about the CHARGE® model by purchasing the book, The Way of the HR Warrior. Let us know about the moments for you that changed your life trajectory. Drop us a note via our website.